“I was just trying to be nice. I wanted to take Zoey along to see the world…”

The moment tears filled Natalie’s eyes, Sebastian’s eyes widened and his face twisted in fury.

“Zoey, drop the act, will you? You think you’re some saint? You’re only with me for the money anyway!”

The moment the words left his mouth, the whole class turned to stare at me. Their eyes were full of disbelief, disgust, and judgment.

“So she’s been dating Sebastian for his money? And here I thought she was all innocent!”

“It’s no wonder she’s always been jealous of Natalie. She’s just afraid someone might steal her sugar daddy!”

Listening to their whispers, Sebastian could not hide the satisfaction tugging at his lips.

“Well? Have you made up your mind? If you’re not coming, then give back every cent I’ve ever given you now!”

“You!”

My fingers trembled with anger, but under their scornful stares, all I could do was clench my teeth and nod.

“Fine! I’ll go!”

…

Sebastian was my sponsor, but our relationship was not what they thought.

In my previous life, I had only agreed to be his so-called girlfriend because I was desperate to pay my mother’s hospital bills.

However, the very next day after I said yes, he confessed to Natalie in front of the whole school, making it look like I was the pathetic third wheel clinging to him.

Later, I learned the truth. Sebastian had never liked me. He was only using me to incite Natalie’s jealousy.

I was nothing more than a pawn in their little love game.

Still, Natalie hated me for it.

She mocked me behind my back, snubbed me in public, and this Tanond trip was just another excuse to humiliate me again.

As I recalled it, I swallowed my rage and agreed to go, but this time, I did not call the police like I had in my previous life.

Instead, I quietly slipped away when it was almost time to board.

As long as I missed that flight, I could escape everything that would happen in Tanond.

I stared at the clock on my phone, counting down the minutes, praying that they would not notice I was gone.

However, just before the boarding gate closed, Natalie appeared out of nowhere and grabbed my arm.

“Found her!”

In an instant, the group swarmed around me, blocking every exit.

“Zoey, where do you think you’re going?” someone barked.

I kept my face calm.

“My passport’s missing. I can’t go. You guys go ahead without me.”

Before I could take a step, Sebastian reached into my pocket and pulled out my passport, waving them in front of my face.

“Missing, huh? Then what’s this?”

Realizing my lie had been exposed, I did not bother to fake it anymore.

“I don’t want to go to Tanond. You all can go watch your stupid strip shows without me.”

“Not going?”

Natalie shrieked. Her voice was sharp enough to make everyone flinch.

“We already bought the tickets! You think you can just back out?”

I frowned as I snatched my documents back from Sebastian.

“I’ll pay you back, but I’m not going to Tanond.”

“Pay me back?”

Sebastian let out a cold laugh. His tone dripped with sarcasm.

“Do you have money? Don’t forget that it was my money that paid your mother’s hospital bills!”

That single sentence made the crowd turn on me instantly.

“Zoey, how can you be so shameless? He helped you and now you’re backing out? You’ve got no shame at all!”

“Yeah! You could’ve said so sooner! Changing your mind at the last minute. What? Was this all some kind of joke to you?”

“A joke?”

I rolled my eyes and let out a cold laugh.

“Weren’t you the ones whispering behind my back saying you’d teach me a lesson once we got to Tanond? Should I pull up your group chat and remind you of what you said?”

The moment the words left my mouth, every face around me changed.

They exchanged nervous glances as suspicion flickered in their eyes.

No one knew how I found out, only that someone, somehow, had leaked their secret.

They would never know that in my past life, after I stopped them at the airport customs, I found their secret group chat — the one they made just to leave me out.

It was all because I had tried to stop them. They created a group chat and came up with a plan to steal my phone and passport in Tanond, leaving me stranded and helpless in a foreign country.

Back then, I kept wondering if I had gone too far and blamed myself for interfering too much. Perhaps Tanond was not as dangerous as I thought.

Then came the headlines — tourists vanishing one after another across Tanond, and I realized just how close I had come to dying.

Now, remembering all that, the only thing left in me was a bone-deep chill.

These classmates of mine were nothing more than a pack of wolves that could never be tamed.

…

I turned to leave.

Natalie suddenly yanked me back by the arm. She spun around and shouted to the others.

“She can’t go! If she leaves, she’ll definitely call the cops and tell our parents! Then none of us will be able to go!”

The moment she said that, the whole class turned pale.

In an instant, everyone closed in. Their eyes were sharp with suspicion and wariness, fixed on me.

“Zoey, you’re just waiting for us to board so you can report us, aren’t you? You just don’t want us to see the show, right?”

I took a half step back, doing everything I could to stall them.

Then, I took another half step back, forcing down the panic rising in my chest as I managed a shaky smile, pretending to play along.

“Of course not. I just heard that Tanond's too hot. I don’t want to get sunburned, that’s all.”

Natalie’s eyes darkened. She ignored my words entirely. With a single sweeping gesture, she pronounced me guilty.

“Don’t listen to her! She’s just jealous and trying to ruin it for us! If she won’t come willingly, we’ll drag her on that plane ourselves!”

Before I could react, several classmates grabbed me, one on each side, forcing my arms up as they started hauling me toward the gate.

I struggled, kicked, and twisted, but I was no match for all of them. Panic surged in my chest as the boarding gate loomed closer.

“Help! Somebody help me!”

From a distance, an airport staff member turned around and began walking toward us.

In a sudden panic, Natalie covered my mouth, her eyes filled with sheer panic.

“Zoey, what the hell are you trying to do?!”

Sebastian grounded his teeth as he spoke. His eyes were practically overflowing with irritation.

I wrenched Natalie’s hand away and turned to him, my words spilling out in haste.

“Sebastian, please, you have to believe me. I’m not calling the police. My mom’s still in the hospital. I just can’t leave the country right now.”

Perhaps mentioning my mother’s hospitalization was convincing enough. Sebastian froze for a moment, then glanced hesitantly at Natalie.

“Nat, maybe… we should just leave her.”

For a split second, a hint of hatred flashed across Natalie’s eyes when she saw how easily Sebastian faltered, but she quickly masked it with a smile.

She glanced around, quickly nodded, but her words dripped with cunning.

“We can leave her behind, but what if she’s just making an excuse to get out of it? Sebastian, you know my family’s sending me abroad soon. If we miss this summer, who knows when we’ll get another chance to go on a trip together?”

Sebastian’s gaze dimmed for a moment, clearly swayed by her words.

“Nat…”

When Natalie noticed that he was actually moved, a smug smile flashed across her face. She immediately pressed her advantage.

“Sebastian, why don’t we just strip her and lock her up? At least then she won’t dare to run off and rat us out.”

Strip me?

I froze and my body stiffened as panic shot through me. I immediately struggled desperately.

“No! Please, Sebastian, I won’t say anything!”

However, Sebastian’s eyes were locked entirely on Natalie at the moment. He did not pay the slightest attention to what I said.

The entire class descended on me, ripping off my clothes layer by layer like peeling an onion.

When they reached my underwear, I twisted and thrashed, screaming for help. Natalie panicked and yelled, “Who’s got rope? Get her tied up, fast!”

In the chaos, someone pulled out a few charging cables.

They bound me tight. The cords cut deep into my skin, leaving a web of red marks.

Just then, the airport broadcast rang out, urging passengers to board.

The group lost patience instantly, leaving me behind as they stormed off in a single, unstoppable wave.

Once they were gone, I wriggled toward the door like a worm, trying to bang my head against it to get someone’s attention.

I did not know how long I had been at it before the door suddenly opened.

A flicker of hope surged as I thought help had arrived. I looked up. Instead, I met Natalie’s venomous gaze.

She had my suitcase in hand, letting out a triumphant hum.

“I knew you wouldn’t behave. Still hoping someone will save you? Dream on!”

Before I could react, she dumped the contents of the suitcase with a crash and tried to shove me into the tiny 24-inch case.

I struggled desperately, but my body was bound tight. I could not move an inch.

With a loud click, the lid slammed shut, plunging me into total darkness.

…

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in a hospital bed.

I had no idea how much time had passed. The room was packed with people. There were police officers, airport staff, and a cluster of anxious middle-aged men and women.

Judging by their familiar features, I guessed they were the parents of my classmates.

The moment I opened my eyes, a well-dressed middle-aged woman pushed forward.

“Zoey, where’s Sebastian? Didn’t he say the whole class was going on a trip together? Why can’t I reach him?”

“Yeah, how did you end up here? Which country did they go to?”

“Exactly! Where did they go? Tell us!”

I could not help a hint of scorn in my eyes as I faced these eager parents, but my expression remained perfectly innocent.

“They… they all went to Tanond to see a strip show.”

“Tanond?!”

The words hit the crowd like thunder. The parents' faces went pale. A few women’s knees gave out, and they sank to the floor, muttering,

“Why Tanond…?”

I knew exactly why they were reacting this way. In my previous life, it was at this exact moment that the news had broken — massive numbers of tourists to Tanond had gone missing.

They were rushing headlong into a deadly trap, risking almost certain death.

All I could do now was pray that fate showed no mercy and none of them return.

“Wait a minute.”

A man with glasses frowned sharply.

“Why did they all go, but you didn’t?”

I was weighing how to answer when the parents’ phones started buzzing one after another.